Stringed musical instrument.



A. s. LESLIE. STRTNGED MUSICAL INSTRUMENT.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 11, 1908. y 922,92 1 Patented May 25, 1909.

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W/TNS ES #rmfr0/iwf rs ARTHUR S. LESLIE, OF SAPPERTON, BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA.

STRINGED MUSICAL INSTRUMENT.

Speeiication of Letters Patent.

Patented lvIay 25, 1909.

Application filed November ll, 1908. Serial No. l)$2,020.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ARTHUR S. Lnsmn, a subject ot the King of Great Britain, and a resident of Sapperton, in the Province oit British Columbia, Dominion of Canada, have invented new and useful Improvements in Stringed Musical Instruments, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact deseription.

This invention relates to improvements in stringed musical instruments, such as violine, violas, celles and the like, and more particularly to instruments of this class having heads provided with spaced sides, one of these sides having substantially circular openings, the other of the sides having recesses extending inwardly from the upper edge, and each presenting near the lower end, an extension of substantially circular lorm, the openings and the recesses being 'formed removably to receive the pegs by means of which the strings are secured to the instruments and adjusted to tune the instruments.

An object of the invention is to improve stringed musical instruments, such as violins, viol-as, violin-celles and the like, so that the strings can be easily replaced when necessary and without loss of time, as is the case in an ordinary stringed instrument when a string is broken.

A further object of the invention is to provide a head for stringed instruments, on which the string-holding pegs can be mounted in position with the strings attached thereto, so that reserve strings can be kept wound on reserve pegs for use in replacing the strings upon the instrument should these latterl strings break.

The invention consists in the construction and combination of parts to be more fully described hereinafter, and particularly setforth in the claims.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specilication, in which similarl characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the views, and in which- Figure l is a perspective view of a violin showing an embodiment of my invention applied thereto, and showing further a string being placed upon the instrument; Fig. 2 is ,an enlarged side elevation of the head or" the violin showing a peg in cross section; Fig. 3 is a transverse section of the head on `the line 3 8 of Fig. 2; and Fig. fl is an enlarged elevation of a peg showing string wound thereon.

Betere proceeding to a more detailed description oi my invention, it should be clearly understood that the same is applicable to various kinds of stringed instruments oi' the class of which the violin is typical, and which have heads movably carrying pegs to which the strings are secured, and which serve to tighten or loosen the strings in timing' the instrument. These pegs consist usually ot tapered shanks and heads by means ot which they can be easily manipulated, the shanks being jammed in circular openings of the head to hold the strings in position. lllhen it is desired to loosen or tighten the strings, the pegs are slightly loosened so that they can be turned within the holes. W hen the been obtained the pegs into the holes so that these receive the pegs bindingly. rllhe heads have spaced sides so that the strings can be secured to the pegs between the sides. It is, ot course, necessary, in replacing a string, lirst to insert the peg so that the string can be attached thereto between the .sides of the head, and this necessitates the loss ot considerable time as it is ditlicult quickly to attach the string to the peg.

It is, of course, essential to replace a broken string as quickly as possible when the instrument is being used, for example, in an orchestra. By means of my invention the player can have at hand a number et' spare pegs, each having wound thereon a spare string ready for mounting upon the instrument.

I so construct the head that the peg can be inserted in the openings thereo't while the string is tied to the peg, thus considerably shortening the time necessary to replace a string in instruments as now used.

Rete 1ring more particularly to the drawings, I have shown, for example, a violin having my invention applied thereto, and consisting of a body l0, a neck ll, and a head l2 at the end of the neck and of special form. The head has spaced sides 18, each of which has a pair of substantially circular openings la therethrough. These openings are preferably tapered, for a purpose which will appear more clearly hereinaitter. Each of the sides furthermore, at points opposite the openings la of the other side, has recesses 15, extending inwardly from the upa spare are again jammed proper adjustment has soV per edges of the sides and having near the bottom, extensions 16 of substantially circular form. The edges of the recesses near the violin body are curved so that the recesses are, broadly speaking, tapered, and whereby the said edge portions are rentrant. The diameter of the extensions 16 is somewhat less than the smallest width of the remainder of each recess, and the recesses like the openings 14, are tapered. The extensions 16 are substantially greater in diameter than are the openings 1d opposite to then 1 employ a peg 17, the shank 1S of which is tapered and rigid with the head 19, by means of which the pegs can be easily manipulated. The shanks have longitudinal slots 2O which are arranged to receive the knotted ends 21 of the strings 22. The spare strings are each wound upon a peg, as is shown most clearly in Fig. e1, having the ends 23 normally not secured to the peg, also held temporarily in the slots 20. The tapered shanks of the pegs are bindingly received by the openings la and the extensions 16 of the recesses 15 when the pegs are in position. Owing to the provision of the recesses 15, the pegs can be inserted in the openings 1-1 and the extensions 16, without removing the strings from the pegs.

`When it is necessary to replace a string, the peg upon which the spare string for this purpose is located, is taken by the player and the string is unwound therefrom. The knotted end 23 is then inserted in the notch of the tail-piece 24, and the peg is then quickly inserted in an opening 111 and guided into the corresponding extension 16 which is designed to receive it. The string itself is guided into position upon the bridge by the hand of the player. The peg is then turned until the string has the proper tightness, whereupon the peg is jammed into the openings transversely of the head, so that it is bindingly held by the openings 14 and the extensions 16.

Having thus described my invention 1 claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent 1. A stringed musical instrument provided with a head having spaced sides, one of said sides having an opening, the other of said sides having a recess extending inwardly from an edge, said opening and said recess being adapted removably to receive a string-holding peg.

2. A stringed musical instrument provided with a head having spaced sides, each of said sides having a plurality o f openings therethrough, each of said sides having a plurality of recesses extending inwardly from the upper edge thereof, and each opposite one of said openings of said other side, said openings and said recesses being tapered, and being adapted removably and bindingly to receive a correspondingly tapered string-holding peg.

3. A stringed musical instrument provided with a head having spaced sides, each of said sides having a plurality of substantially circular tapered openings therethrough, each of said sides having a plurality of recesses extending inwardly from an edge thereof, and each opposite one of said openings of said other side, said recesses having substantially circular extensions smaller in diameter than the least width of said recesses, said extensions being tapered, and string-holding pegs removably arranged in said openings of said extensions.

1. A stringed musical instrument provided. with a head having spaced sides, each of said sides having a plurality of circular tapered openings therethrough, each of said sides having a plurality of recesses extending inwardly from the upper edge thereof, and each opposite one of said openings of said other side, each of said recesses having the edge nearer the instrument body reentrant, each of said recesses being formed near the lower end with a substantially circular extension, greater in diameter than said opening opposite thereto in said other side, said extensions being tapered, and string-holding tapered pegs, each arranged in one of said extensions and said opening opposite thereto, and adapted to be bindingly held therein.

A stringed musical instrument provided with a head and string holding pegs, said head having spaced openings adapted to receive said pegs and so formed that the tension of the strings serves to hold said pegs in posit-ion in said openings, said openings permitting said pegs to be removed in directions transverse of the lengths of said pegs.

6. A stringed musical instrument provided with a head having recesses extending inwardly from an edge and adapted to receive string holding pegs whereby said pegs are removable in directions transverse of the 

